Mercedes Ben

By Jennifer Toland TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

Thursday

Nov 27, 2008 at 3:02 AM

The Ben Roethlisberger who threw eight interceptions and was sacked 10 times over a rocky three-game stretch earlier this season is not the quarterback the Patriots are preparing to defend against Sunday at Gillette Stadium.

They’re getting ready for the guy that took the Steelers to a Super Bowl title three years ago and earned his first Pro Bowl nod last season.

“Big Ben, he’s pretty impressive,” Patriots nose tackle Vince Wilfork said yesterday. “I mean, the guy makes plays, in the pocket, out of the pocket, running the ball, throwing the ball. And he has guys around him, running backs and tight ends that can catch the ball, (wide receivers) Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes. Everywhere you look, there’s a playmaker. He’s got it all.”

Pittsburgh’s defense has been outstanding — it ranks No. 1 against the rush, pass and total — but its offense hasn’t exactly been worthy of wows. The Steelers are in the lower end of the rankings in total (26th), rush (24th) and pass (18th) offense.

The bottom line, though, is that the Steelers will arrive here 8-3, and for the fifth straight week the Patriots — still fighting for a playoff spot — will face a quality quarterback (Buffalo’s Trent Edwards had been playing well heading into the teams’ Week 10 meeting).

“I think both the Patriots and us are playing very good football right now,” Roethlisberger said yesterday via conference call, “and I think that’s why this is going to be a great matchup.”

Roethlisberger is 1-3 against the Patriots, including a start in the 2004 AFC Championship game. New England won last year’s game against Pittsburgh, also played here, 34-13, shutting out the Steelers in the second half and shutting them down (0 for 3) in the red zone.

The 26-year-old Roethlisberger, playing with an injured right shoulder, really struggled during those three games against the Giants, Redskins and Colts. The Steelers lost two of the three, but defeated the Redskins despite Roethlisberger’s 15.1 QB rating.

He has played better in Pittsburgh’s last two games. Against San Diego, he led the Steelers 72 yards by completing 6 of 6 passes to set up Jeff Reed’s winning field goal with 11 seconds left.

Last Thursday in a 27-10 win over the Bengals in the snow, Roethlisberger threw a 3-yard TD pass, scrambled for an 8-yard score, and is hoping he put the bad times behind him.

“You see every quarterback go through it at some point in a season or in their career,” Roethlisberger said. “It’s just something that you’ve got to push through. Like they say in basketball, when you’re missing and you’re not hitting anything, the best way to get out of the funk is to shoot your way out of it. You’ve just got to keep pressing forward and that’s the biggest key.”

Roethlisberger, who has been known throughout his career for his big arm and mobility, threw for 3,154 yards and a team-record 32 touchdowns last season. He is on pace to become the first Steelers QB with three straight 3,000-yard passing seasons.

“If you look at him, he’s running to make plays and throw the ball deep and make big plays,” Patriots linebacker Mike Vrabel said. “He’s real comfortable with guys hanging on him, pulling on his jersey. We were watching film (of Pittsburgh’s game) against Jacksonville and somebody had him in a horse collar. He’s going down and he throws a 20-yard strike to a receiver. It’s important not only to get to him, but also to force him to get the ball out of there instead of running around making plays.”

As Wilfork pointed out, Roethlisberger has two fine receivers in Ward and Holmes. Ward, in his 11th NFL season, leads the team with 54 catches for 718 yards. Almost half of Roethlisberger’s 11 TD passes (five) have landed in Ward’s hands.

“I’ve been blessed to be able to play with Hines now for five years,” Roethlisberger said. “He’s made me a lot better quarterback. Just the understanding and the level that we are on now, I think you’ll see us communicating a lot better.”

Tight end Heath Miller also has been a part of the passing game mix with 25 catches for 284 yards and two touchdowns.

Roethlisberger could be counted on heavily this week if the Steelers are without running back Willie Parker. Parker, who has swelling in his left knee, did not practice yesterday. Coach Mike Tomlin said earlier this week that Parker was questionable for Sunday.

The rushing attack has not been up to Steelers standards this season. Parker has missed five games because of knee and shoulder injuries. He came out of last week’s game against the Bengals after picking up 37 yards on 14 carries. Pittsburgh averaged just 3.3 yards per carry against Cincinnati’s 24th-ranked rushing defense. Mewelde Moore will start if Parker can’t go.

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